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The First Day of Class on Zoom

A Four-Step Plan: The First Day of Class on Zoom -Crystal O. Wong, Faculty Focus

Creating a vibrant community is always on my mind, so the very first thing I do on the first day of class is pass around a tray of cookies and ask students to talk about their favorite type of cookie. Immediately, the room is filled with surprise, smiles, and chatter. That is why I was stumped when a colleague asked, 鈥淲hat do we do on the first day of class on Zoom?鈥 My impulse was to think about replicating those successful first-day activities, but what works face-to-face doesn鈥檛 necessarily translate well online. So, what should we do? To answer my colleague鈥檚 question, I write this article.



Last Modified: August 5, 2020